“We had a group of individuals that were committing a pretty serious assault in the middle of the street,” Magnus said. “Of course, when they heard the police arriving, they all took off. The cameras were able to track where they were headed and what they looked like and we were able to make arrests of everybody who was involved in that.”

Magnus said cases like this show the program has been a huge success.

“The goal is not to create some sort of Orwellian-brother situation, but rather to be looking at public places that have been hot spots for crime, or where people have felt unsafe, and to give them an added measure of safety and security,” he said.

Magnus said that, because many are retired Richmond officers, they know what they’re looking at and what’s going on in different areas.

The officers are paid hourly and don’t receive benefits, but have been a huge benefit for the Richmond Police Department.

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